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A former FBI official is warning current law enforcement agencies about the upcoming “Justice for J6” rally planned to support jailed Capitol rioters.
“I think they should take it very seriously,” former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe told CNN Monday (September 6). “In fact, they should take it more seriously than they took the same sort of intelligence that they likely saw on January 5,” McCabe added.
Donald Trump’s former campaign manager revealed plans for the rally last month, prompting police officials in the nation’s capital to prepare for an influx of right-wing protesters on September 18.
It’s unclear how many people might show up to the rally, but planned vacation days for officers of the DC Metropolitan Police Department and US Capitol Police have reportedly been postponed as security preparations get underway.
Last month, Homeland Security Intelligence director John Cohen told CNN that extremist rhetoric online is similar to what officials saw before the January 6 attack. Lawmakers reported that considerations to reinstall fencing around the Capitol grounds were being made.
McCabe noted that law enforcements have a few things working in their favor this time around:
“You don’t have a sitting President actively fanning the flames and trying to get people to attend the rally,” McCabe said.
“And on the other hand, it looks like, from all indications, our law enforcement partners are well prepared for this one. They seem to be taking the intelligence very seriously, which raises a question as to whether or not they did on January 6, but that’s another issue,” he added.
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